January 23rd

January 24, 2014

By

TERRY NAU

Sports editor emeritus
PAWTUCKET â€” Tolmanâ€™s Jesse Fernandes went to the free throw line with two seconds left in Thursday nightâ€™s Division II-Central game with Exeter/West Greenwich. The scoreboard showed a 67-67 deadlock. Tolman students rattled the bleachers with their feet in anticipation of the upcoming free throws.
â€śIâ€™m a 70 percent free throw shooter,â€ť the junior said a few minutes after he made the second of two freebies for an exciting and hard-fought 68-67 victory over the Avengers. â€śIâ€™m glad I had two free throws. I missed the first one but the second one was pretty good.â€ť

January 24, 2014

PAWTUCKET â€” Shea High got up close with one of the leading contenders in Division II this season, and the results were not pretty for the locals.
The visitors from West Warwick felt quite at home at â€śThe Cageâ€ť Thursday night, rolling to an 80-44 victory. The II-Central leading Wizards improve to 6-0 while the Raiders have now dropped four straight league contests since beating Exeter/West Greenwich back on Dec. 20.

January 23, 2014

PROVIDENCE â€” With the Democratic primary race for governor looking increasingly like a run to the left, candidate Angel Taveras came out of the gate Thursday with a plan to increase the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour by 2018.

January 23, 2014

By

Times staff

CENTRAL FALLS â€” When Central Falls Mayor James Diossa took the helm of the stateâ€™s smallest city in December 2012, he was only 27, and one of his campaign promises was to engage the cityâ€™s youngest residents and give them an opportunity to be part of his plan to improve the cityâ€™s image and help him lead it out of bankruptcy.

On Thursday, Diossa made good on that promise when he swore in five Central Falls High School students to the cityâ€™s first Mayorâ€™s Youth Council.

January 23, 2014

NapoleĂˇo L. Vicente

LINCOLN - NapoleĂˇo L. Vicente, 91, passed on January 22nd with his loving family by his side. He was the husband of Adelina (Pina) Vicente. They have been married for 66 years.
Born in Brava, Cabo Verde, a son of the late Amancio and Julia (Pina) Vicente.
He had been employed by Healthtex for many years before retiring.

January 23, 2014

George J. Washburn

SEEKONK - George J. Washburn, 94, passed away Tuesday, January 21, 2014. He was the beloved husband of the late Emily C. (Weaton) Washburn. Born in Taunton, a son of the late George E. and Almy (Bliss) Washburn, he resided in Seekonk over seventy years.

January 23, 2014

Donald R. Farrell

CUMBERLAND - Donald R. Farrell, 82, of Cumberland, passed away Wednesday at the Philip Hulitar Hospice Center, Providence. He was the husband of Bertha (Pellerin) Farrell, and they had been married for over 56 years.
Born in Central Falls, he was the son of the late John Sousa and Ethel (Farrell) Sousa. He was a life-long Cumberland resident.
He was a United States Army, Korean War Veteran. He received the Korean War citation, three Bronze Stars, Occupational Medal of Japan, and the Combat Infantry Badge.

January 23, 2014

Editor's note: Jim Baron's column, Politics As Usual, appears on Mondays in The Times. The column below was first published in The Times on Jan. 20, 2014.

Ever since Gov. Lincoln Chafee announced last September that he would not seek another term at the Statehouse, reporters have been nagging him to say what he thinks his legacy should be or what he would like it to be.
I think we got that answer last week, with Chafeeâ€™s final State of the State address.

January 22nd

January 23, 2014

CUMBERLAND â€” Throughout the 2012-13 winter campaign, then-Cumberland High sophomore Jack Bauer improved at a rapid rate, causing older brother Andrew to continue to hassle him about registering for a USA Swimming-affiliated club program.
Andrew, a phenomenal distance freestyler in his own right, had done the same, and he reasoned that Jack would only get faster, given the more grueling workouts.

January 23, 2014

The second snowstorm of 2014 dumped about 6 inches of light, powdery snow on Pawtucket.

â€śIt wasnâ€™t a horrible storm, but the timing was an issue,â€ť Pawtucket Public Works Director Lance Hill said Wednesday. â€śIt started just before rush hour and when you have traffic on the road packing down the snow it makes it extremely difficult to remove.â€ť

The total snow accumulation in Pawtucket was 6 inches.
Pawtucketâ€™s Public Works Department plows and sands more than 180 miles of roadway.

January 23, 2014

PAWTUCKET â€” As a father watching his son represent the St. Raphael/Providence Country Day/Wheeler co-op squad last winter, Gary Leonard noticed it often didn't play as a team, a fluid unit. To him, it looked as if the players seemed more concerned with individual stats and/or glory.
â€śI thought the biggest issue with them was selfish team play,â€ť he stated Tuesday afternoon. â€śWhen I became the head coach back in September, it was my goal to eliminate the selfishness and try to build a program based on team success.â€ť

January 22, 2014

Maureen Azar

CUMBERLAND- Maureen Azar, 50, passed away unexpectedly Tuesday, January 21, 2014 at her home. She was the beloved daughter of Joan B. (Toomey) Azar and the late Louis R. Azar.
Besides her mother, she is survived by her loving sister, Joanne Diggle, her beloved niece, Ashley Diggle who she adored, and her partner John Plaskon of New York.

January 22, 2014

Thomas D. McGrath

NORTH PROVIDENCE- Thomas D. McGrath, 67, of Obed Ave., passed away Friday in the Trinity Health and Rehabilitation Center, Woonsocket.
Born in Pawtucket he was the son of the late Edmond F. and Mary D. (Ware) McGrath. He resided in North Providence with his companion Diane Anelundi for eight years.
Thomas was a welder employed by the Whittet Co., Central Falls and previously employed by the Kellaway Transportation Co., Pawtucket.

January 22, 2014

Jose Jesus de Abreu

PAWTUCKET- Jose Jesus de Abreu, 81, of Pawtucket passed away Tuesday, January 20th at the Philip Hulitar Hospice Center, Providence. He was the beloved husband of Francelina (dos Santos) De Abreu and father to Grace Small and Belinha De Abreu.

January 21st

January 21, 2014

CENTRAL FALLS â€” She was one of the city's own, who had pursued her education and then stayed to help and inspire others, so the news of the sudden passing of Ella Risk Elementary School Principal Maureen Azar cast a pall over the community.

January 21, 2014

Shirley M. Landry

CENTRAL FALLS - Shirley M. Landry, 68, passed on December 14, 2013 while visiting her sister in Ohio. She was the wife of Reginald Landry. They had been married for 50 years. Shirley had been employed in the jewelry industry for many years.
Besides her husband, she is survived by a daughter, Kristen Landry, a grandson, Mathew, her siblings, Mary Shaner, Franny Brenaman, Suzie Hodge, David Gamel and Ronnie Weir. She was the mother of the late Kimberlee Landry.
Services were private.
For online condolences visit www.thekeefefuneralhome.com

January 21, 2014

Zilda de Jesus Salustio

CUMBERLAND - Zilda de Jesus Salustio (de Loureiro), 95, of Broad St. passed away Friday in The Holiday Retirement Home, Manville. She was the beloved wife of the late Antonio L. Salustio.
Born in Moimenta do Dao, Mangualde, Portugal she was the daughter of the late Joao M. and Ana (Marques) de Loureiro. She had resided in Cumberland for 54 years.
She was employed by the former Atlas Braid Co., Cumberland for many years retiring in 1982. Mrs. Salustio was a communicant of Our Lady of Fatima Church, Cumberland.

January 21, 2014

January 21, 2014

PROVIDENCE â€“ There are two schools of thought as to why Ted Bancroft and the Friars have gone on to string three Big East wins together following an 0-2 start.

Representing the Providence program at Mondayâ€™s college basketball brunch, held at Warwick's Radisson Hotel, Bancroft mentioned that a players-only meeting was staged in the aftermath of a 30-point blowout loss at Villanova earlier this month. At the time, the Friars appeared in a free fall after losing back-to-back overtime contests to UMass and Seton Hall before getting drubbed by the Wildcats.

January 20th

January 20, 2014

PAWTUCKET â€” Speaking with Slater Mill Museumâ€™s new executive director Lori Urso, one finds a person who is historically grounded while creatively edgy. That unique blend seems to make her tailor-made to lead the renowned textile industry museum as it looks to expand its reach and mission.